AGM
2016 - Bailli Delegue’s Report for 2015
Confrerie,
it is my pleasure to present the report of the Bailliage de Singapour for the
year ending 31 December 2015.
2015
was a year of celebration as our Bailliage commemorated the 40th anniversary of
our inception. In 1975, approval was granted by the Chaine Headquarters in
Paris for the formation of the Singapore Bailliage, and the first interim
Council was formed under Fil Juntereal who later became the first Bailli
Delegue of Singapore. It was a wonderful year of celebration as a record 13
events were organized for members (14 events if you include the French Voilah
Dinner which was a collaboration of all the French Culinary and Wine Societies
in Singapore). Fil Juntereal himself was present as our Special Guest at the 40th
Anniversary Chapitre in October, and I recall how happy and proud he was to see
how our Baillage had grown in the years since then. The Chapitre, which was
held at the Resorts World Sentosa was a fitting climax to our anniversary
celebrations with the Induction Ceremony taking place against the stunning
backdrop of Admiral Cheng Ho’s replica junk in the Maritime Experiential
Museum. Members and Guests were then ushered through the Museum’s Undersea
Aquarium eventually leading to the magnificent Ocean Gallery where dinner was
served. This was of course not the first time our Chapitre had been held at
this venue, but Council felt that there could be no better venue than this to
stage our 40th Anniversary Chapitre.
Functions/Events
The
year of celebration began exactly a year ago with the Annual General Meeting on
15 March 2015 at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, where our Maitre Rotisseur and
Executive Chef Toni Robertson prepared an exquisite dinner for the occasion. In
celebration of the 40th anniversary, 2 wines from the 1975 vintage,
the Chateau Palmer and ex-Chateau magnums of Lafon Rochet were also served for
the occasion. Commemorative Riedel Decanters with the Chaine Logo were also
presented to all members as a momento of the occasion.
The
focus of the Conseil National has always been to arrange events which not only
highlight the rich culinary heritage and diversity that we enjoy, but also as a
platform for our professional members to show off the best that their
establishments have to offer. The uniqueness of the Chaine was no more evident than
when we were approached by the French Ambassador to help arrange their French
Voilah celebration in May. Unlike the other societies which were focused
primarily on wines, we are a society with a strong culinary heritage with
Professional members spread across most of the top hotels and many of the leading culinary establishments in
Singapore. Added to that, we also have a wine collection that is at least
comparable to the wine societies.
Of
the 14 events (including the French Voilah dinner at the Fullerton), 13 were
held at the establishments of our members. We continued to add diversity to our
events, and this came in the form of an Indian Dinner held at the Tandoor
Restaurant, a sunset Rotisserie on Mt Faber, a fusion-Asian Christmas Dinner at
Karl Dobler’s Table at 7, and even a roadtrip to Malacca where a special event
was planned in conjunction with the Malacca Bailliage.
Our
signature events were once again in high demand with the Caviar Brunch and
Non-Professionals Dinner attracting strong support. Plans are underway to add
capacity to some events with the Caviar Brunch set to move to the Grand Hyatt
this year where the capacity is 200 guests. However Council is always conscious
that with added capacity, there could be strains on certain establishments and
quality remains the highest priority and will not be compromised. Of the 14
events, 10 events were sellouts and we unfortunately had to turn away some members.
In order to ensure that members will have priority over guests, Council has now
decided that members and their spouses will be given a one week priority
booking window at all our exclusive and signature events. Guests will be placed
on a waitlist queue and confirmed after the one week priority period, subject
to availability.
In
a year in which many of our Professional Chef Members gave their all to making
our 40th Anniversary a special celebration, it was a close contest
to determine the Best Dish of the year. We had numerous contenders including
the Slow Braised Angus Beef short-rib, red wine jus, caraway
spiced carrot puree, roast Jerusalem artichokes prepared by Chef Lucas Glanville of the Grand Hyatt
which won 1st Runner Up, and the Pigeon, Fresh
Cherries with Savoury Cabbage prepared by Chef Kong Kok
Kiang of the One Farrer Hotel which won the 2nd Runner Up award.
Ultimately however, the honours went to Chef Toni Robertson of the Mandarin
Oriental for her exquisite Soy Risotto with
Oyster and Truffle dish which was
acclaimed the Best Dish of the year by our members. It was a well deserved
tribute to what was also a wonderful evening of celebration for members at last
year’s AGM. The Best Event honours went to the Parkroyal on Pickering for the
Caviar Brunch, not surprisingly as this has become one of our most eagerly
anticipated events each year.
While
2015 was a year of celebration within the Bailliage, our Council has decided
that 2016 will be a year in which we celebrate our wonderful heritage with the
rest of the world. It has been almost 15 years since our Bailliage last
celebrated a Grand Chapitre in Singapore, and so we have proposed a 4 day/3
Night Grand Chapitre from the 20 to 23 October 2016. We will later be
presenting outline details of the Grand Chapitre and we hope that Members will
support this event, which seeks to celebrate our wonderful culinary heritage with
the rest of the world.
Finances
For
the year ended 31 December 2015, the Bailliage recorded an Operating Surplus of
$26,995 against $37,336 in the previous year. Our Argentier will later go
through the specific details, but this can be entirely attributed to increased
expenses from our 40th anniversary celebrations, and a policy to
subsidise substantially all our “members only” events, such as the event we are
all attending this evening. Of the events held last year, surpluses were
recorded in 9 events. However there were large deficits in 3 events, of which
the AGM and Chefs Table were members-only events, while the Chapitre was a
special 40th anniversary celebration event.
There
were certain adjustments to our wine stock last year that resulted in our net
surplus reducing to $19,679. Our Balance Sheet remains in a very healthy
position with Total Equity rising to $731,913, of which $174,933 is in cash.
Membership
Membership
has remained stable with a marginal increase at 163 members as at this AGM date.
During the course of the year, 8 members left our Bailliage, some relocating
while others have chosen not to renew their membership. In turn we welcomed 9
new members, including 2 new Professional members. We now have 106
Non-Professional Members and 57 Professional Members or 35% of membership. Of
this, 29 are Professional Chef Members and 1 Sommelier. The compositions are marginally
changed since last year, but we are delighted that we now have 1 Sommelier
member. While there has been a steady stream of Non-Professionals joining our
ranks and in our waiting list, this has not been the case with the
Professionals, and our plan is to continue to focus on this in the coming year.
The Professionals and especially the Rotisseur members are at the very heart of
our society and we must ensure that their presence and influence within our Society
remains strong.
Amendments to the Constitution
This
year we are proposing certain amendments to update our Constitution so that it
is aligned with the Statutes of the Global Chaine des Rotisseurs. The
amendments relate to the inclusion of several titles, ranks and awards, which
have thus far not been included in our Constitution. The title of Echanson and Sommelier
will be added so as to bring our titles in line with the Global titles, while
the awards of “Officier Grand Commandeur” and “Haut Commandeur” are for members who have achieved 50
and 60 years of uninterrupted Chaine membership. This is our forward planning
for at least the next 10 years. The title of Sommelier has been added as we
have also decided to include Professional Sommeliers into our Bailliage
membership. Our new member Mr Yeo Xi Yang currently holds the more general
title of Professional de la Table, but will hold the Sommelier title subject to
the approval of this meeting to amend the Constitution.
I
hope that this meeting will support our proposal for these amendments to our
constitution, the details of which were circulated earlier with the Notice of
AGM.
Conclusion
In
conclusion, I would like to pay a tribute and thank each one of my dedicated
team of co-workers on the Council for their commitment and tireless dedication.
Organising events each month, particularly given the high standards we have set
ourselves can be challenging, and I know that each Council member is doing so
not just because we share a common passion for gastronomy, but because of the camaraderie
and friendships that we all share, and the pleasure that comes when we share
great experiences with our friends.
To
Ted and Otto, our Honorary Conseillers….you are the very foundation pillars of
the Singapore Bailliage, full of passion and a wealth of knowledge and
experience. To our Culinary Professionals Terence and Georg, who together with
Otto are really at the centre of every event being planned, working closely
with the culinary teams at each of the venues to bring the best out of each dining
establishment. To Kin my Chancelier, and able deputy who does so much behind
the scenes and is ever willing to step into any gap when certain council
members are travelling, To Wai Phang, our most able Argentier, whose dedication
and meticulous attention to detail has been a revelation to us these last 2
years. To Leroy….. our efficient Archiviste, who has redefined what is known as
remote follow up, keeping tabs and following up on matters while enjoying his
passion for driving in remote parts of the world. To Shek Wei, our very
dedicated and most creative Charge de Presse who continues to excite and
sometimes tease us all with his EDMs. To Tok Hong, Our Charge de Mission
(Wines) for coming up with some wonderful wine pairings for our dinners, and
whose knowledge and passion for wines ensures that we have a wine collection
that is the envy of many of our peers. To Fookie, our Charge de Mission
(Protocol), brought back from retirement to offer that extra panache that only
he can conspire to produce. To See Kiat, our Charge de Mission Events, so
dedicated in following up each month on ratings and helping with the
organization of events each month. Last but not least to Tze Wee, our Charge de
Mission Finance, full of enthusiasm and ever willing to help not only with
Finance matters but also at events. We have a unique team and I feel so blessed
to be working with such an amazing group of persons.
We
also have a dedicated team of Sub Committees, helmed mainly by our Council members,
but also including several members. On the Culinary Committee, our thanks to
Eric Neo and Ivan Yeo. On the Wine Committee, our appreciation to Wee Ge Soon,
Marc Lau and Jeff Low.
My
special thanks also to our 2 faithful Honorary Auditors, Mr Andrew Lau and Mr
Lim Wee Hann. Since last year, our 2 Honorary Auditors no longer attend Council
meetings to ensure their complete independence and impartiality in the audit of
the Bailliage. As stipulated under our constitution, they will also not be
eligible for re-election as Honorary Auditors, and so they retire with our
gratitude and appreciation.
And
finally to all of you, our Confrerie, thank you for your support and
encouragement, and also your constructive feedback. I know that we all come
with different tastes, experiences and expectations, but that is the beauty of
the art of gastronomy. We are in the hands of the artists, and while we may not
always agree with their work, we appreciate their passion, dedication to their
craft, and ultimately their pursuit of bringing pleasure to us all.
We are one
in Spirit !
Thank
you & Viva La Chaine !
